Scapa Glansa

A distillery bottling of Scapa and bottled at 40%. Established in 1885 on the Orkney coast a mile from Highland Park, Scapa is Orkney's unpeated island malt. Its wash still is a rare Lomond still, the plates long removed, giving a creamy, oily spirit through heavy copper contact.

It was drawn off a wide necked Lomond still that lends a creamy, oily weight, for a honeyed, tropical spirit with a maritime edge. Ex-Bourbon casks held the spirit, soft oak that lets the fruit lead. With no age statement, it shows a creamy, honeyed body and a fruity lift. Island maturation by Scapa Flow lends a faint salt air note as the whisky breathes. Water from the Lingro Burn is piped to keep the spirit clear of peat. A long fermentation of up to seventy hours coaxes out the fruity esters. Mothballed in 1994, Scapa was restored and revived by Pernod Ricard in 2005. The malt long fed the Ballantine's and Teacher's blends before its own fame grew.

At 40% it is smooth and honeyed. A gentle vanilla and coconut from the wood, with pear, banana and a gentle spice. The texture is creamy and oily, the fruit lifted by honey. The finish runs soft, fruity and warm. This is a creamy, unpeated Orkney single malt.